


The Love You Take

by Lunaris (lunaris1013)



Category: Pundit RPF
Genre: Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-01-02
Updated: 2006-01-02
Packaged: 2017-10-02 17:48:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunaris1013/pseuds/Lunaris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Four glimpses into a 22 year relationship.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Love You Take

**Author's Note:**

> My _offtherecord story, written for superguard9 who was kind enough to add the line "I'm really not that picky if someone wants to do a different pairing" at the end of her request. Beta by thermador and trixiesfic.

> _Indianapolis not only denied it, but also issued a press release blasting the reporters and my partner, Dan Patrick, since he and I discussed it on the radio yesterday. Hey, Colts, you may be 11-0, but if you're going to get Dan, you're going to have to go through me first.
>
>> \--Keith Olbermann on 
> 
> _Countdown_, December 1, 2005_

  
It's never good when the phone rings after midnight because it can only be one of three types of call. The least of these is the annoying inconvenience of the drunken wrong number. The worst of these is the emergency call, and the likelihood of these increases as you, your friends and your family reach a certain age. Somewhere in between lies the call from a friend with something on his mind. It's not over quickly and painlessly like the wrong number, though it is often drunkenly dialed. It's not a true emergency of life-or-death proportions, at least not to the call's recipient; a recipient who will listen even though he'd much rather be sleeping, because this is what friends do. When Keith's phone rang at 2:37a.m., waking him from a fairly pleasant dream, he assumed the worst but quickly and silently prayed for the least. What he got was an insomniac sportscaster with a troubled mind.

"'lo?"

"What in the hell was that?"

"Danny, it's, um," Keith squinted in the direction of his clock and quickly gave up, "late. And I'm not nearly coherent enough to play guessing games right now."

"I just watched tonight's Countdown."

"You called me to let me know you've finally caught up on your TiVo?"

"Keith, you sounded like my junior high school boyfriend."

"You never told me you had a boyfriend in junior high; here I thought I was your first."

"You were. I didn't. You're not helping."

> _New York City - March 1984  
> Keith's apartment the morning after his CNN farewell party_
> 
> Dan rolled over onto his back and opened his eyes. He'd never been the kind of guy to sneak out in the morning, putting his shoes on after he was outside the front door. No, love 'em and leave 'em just wasn't his style. This situation, however, might call for drastic measures. Giving in to his curiosity was one thing; having the courage to face up to it the next morning was something else entirely. But before he had finished planning his pre-dawn escape, he realized he was trapped. Keith was awake.
> 
> He turned to look at his bed partner and saw the mild panic on his face, "Thinking about leaving without saying goodbye?"
> 
> "No." Dan continued to stare at the ceiling and listen to the early morning sounds of the city outside. "Yes. It's just... I've never..."
> 
> "I know you haven't."
> 
> "Was it that obvious?"
> 
> "Not really. Except for the part where you said, 'Oh God, I can't believe I'm going through with this.'"
> 
> "Yeah, that would, um, give it away wouldn't it?" He rubbed his eyes and dropped his hands to the bed with a thump. "I guess I thought that if I didn't talk about it then I could forget it happened."
> 
> "And here I thought I was unforgettable."
> 
> "That's not what I mean."
> 
> "If it's not real, you don't have to question your masculinity. Right."
> 
> "I like women."
> 
> "So do I. They're soft, they smell good and I'll probably end up married to one."
> 
> "Then why..."
> 
> Keith shrugged. "Why did you come home with me last night? I was curious. I fooled around with a couple of guys in college and I liked it."
> 
> "But you said you like women."
> 
> "Some guys like to get tied up. Some like to wear women's underwear. I like to get fucked once in a while," Keith rolled toward Dan, propping himself on his elbow, "It doesn't have to be an either/or proposition, Dan, not unless you need it to be. And if that was the case, you probably would have had a clue before tonight." Keith looked over at the clock and sighed. "It's 4:30 and I'm going back to sleep. If you're gone when I wake up, I'll understand. If you're still here, there may or may not be more sex, but I will definitely make you help me pack for Boston."
> 
> Dan looked at his clothes piled on the floor, rolled over toward the edge of the bed, and pulled the blankets up around his shoulders.
> 
> ~*~*~*~

  
"There was a time you would have laughed at that performance. As I recall, that time was several years ago when I actually was your boyfriend. What's gotten in to you?"

Dan sighed into the receiver. "I'm sorry. I'm on edge because I haven't been sleeping, and then Jack comes home with some homophobic crap that he heard at school and as I'm talking to him about it, I wonder just what he'd think of his dad if he knew about..."

"Knew about what? That his dad had an affair with another man a long time ago? And that it happened to be with his Uncle Keith? How would he find out about that?"

"It's just that... It's been on my mind lately."

> _Bristol, Connecticut - September 1992  
> The men's room at ESPN studios, 30 minutes before air_
> 
> "Think they'll ever hire someone to do our makeup?" Dan said as he worked on smoothing out the makeup on his forehead.
> 
> Keith reached around his partner for the can of hair spray, "Oh, I don't know that I'd actually want to give up our luxury dressing room here," he said, taking off his glasses before lacquering his dark hair into submission.
> 
> "Luxury? Need I remind you that this is the second floor men's room?"
> 
> "Yeah, but if we were sitting in makeup chairs right now I wouldn't have the luxury to do this," wrapping his left arm around Dan's waist, Keith pulled him close from behind, his right hand sliding down the front of Dan's pinstriped wool slacks to fondle what was beneath. "Going commando tonight?"
> 
> Dan leaned back, carefully resting his head on Keith's shoulder so as not to ruin his makeup. "Thought it might make things a little easier for you."
> 
> "Very generous," Keith replied, unzipping Dan's pants. He suddenly stopped what he was doing and stepped backward taking Dan with him. Four shuffling steps and they slammed into the support between stalls.
> 
> "What in the hell...?"
> 
> "Look in the mirror, Dan."
> 
> Dan shifted just enough to look up. Standing this far back, he could see himself in the mirror down to his knees. He watched as Keith took his cock out of his pants and started stroking it, spreading the pre-come up the shaft for a little lube, pulling, settling into a rhythm. He watched himself cover Keith's right hand with his own and begin to thrust, his body picking up the tempo, pushing back, grinding into Keith.
> 
> But mostly he watched Keith watching him.
> 
> "I love to watch you," Keith said in that low, growly voice reserved for sex. Reserved for Dan. "I love the way you give yourself to me, yet always keeping a shred of control when we're here. And God I love the expression on your face when you come. Are you ready, Danny? You are, aren't you? Keep your eyes open for me. I want you to see what I see."
> 
> Dan's ragged breathing hitched, and he bit his lower lip to keep from crying out. And even though he really didn't want to see himself, he kept his eyes open, watching his body spasm, seeing his seed covering his partners hand. He watched himself being watched, and saw the lust and joy and devotion play out over Keith's face.
> 
> They stood together, eyes locked in the mirror for a moment before Dan took his weight off of Keith, receiving a kiss on the back of the neck for the effort. The knock came on the door as they were cleaning up, "In the studio in five, guys!"
> 
> "One of these days we'll get caught, you know that don't you?"
> 
> Keith smoothed down the front of his trousers, willing his erection away by reciting a list of American League third base coaches in his head, "I always lock the door."
> 
> "I still prefer going to your place. I'm gonna bite through my lip one of these days trying to keep quiet."
> 
> "So do I get to go home with blue balls tonight, or will you be coming over to take care of me?"
> 
> "Better believe it. Paybacks are hell, you know."
> 
> "I'm counting on it."
> 
> ~*~*~*~

  
"Is that why you haven't been sleeping?" Keith was answered by silence. "Danny?"

"I miss you, Keith."

"We talk every day."

"That's not what I mean and you damn well know it. I miss _us_."

"Dan, don't. Please."

"Don't tell me that doing the show together every day hasn't made you want it again, Keith. Don't tell me you haven't even considered..."

> _Bristol, Connecticut - May 1997  
> Keith's living room, 2 a.m._
> 
> "I wasn't sure you'd come."
> 
> Dan closed the door behind him cutting the ambient light in the already darkened room by half. "I almost didn't, not after that stunt you pulled after the show. What in the hell is wrong with you lately?"
> 
> "What's wrong with me? You know damn good and well what's wrong with me."
> 
> "Keith, it's been over a month..."
> 
> "You thought I'd be over it in a month?" Keith's voice remained calm, though his resentment was palpable in the shadows. "Do you have any idea what you mean to me? You weren't my fling on the side, Dan. You were the other half that made me whole." Dan raked his fingers through his hair and let out an exasperated sigh. Keith cut him off before he could speak. "I'm not blaming you; you did what was right. Sue and the kids should be your priority, not me. We shouldn't have gone on as long as we did. Hell, we should never have even started when I came to Bristol."
> 
> Dan sat on the opposite end of the sofa from Keith. "You were never just a fling on the side to me, either, you know that."
> 
> "Yeah, I know. That's why it had to end."
> 
> "So why..."
> 
> "Do you know how hard it is for me to work with you every day? To sit next to you, write with you, and know that we aren't..."
> 
> "We aren't us any more. I know." Dan stood, voice rising, "Dammit Keith, do you think this hasn't been hard on me?"
> 
> Keith stood to face his partner. "I know it has. I see it on your face every single day. But you get to go home to a wife and three kids who adore you. You'll get through this fine, Danny. I come home to this," he said, gesturing around his sparsely furnished bachelor apartment. "It's empty. You were what made this godforsaken place home. Without you, I can't keep myself together. I can't keep the show together."
> 
> "Keith..."
> 
> "I can't do this any more, Danny. I'm leaving ESPN."
> 
> "You're what?"
> 
> "I need to get away from here. I'm fucking miserable. Here, at work... I'm making everyone at the network miserable too. If I'm going to start over, I need to do it without you as a constant presence in my life. You know I've always hated this town anyway."
> 
> "So that's it?"
> 
> Keith shrugged. "We're, uh, working out something with NBC."
> 
> "Have you told anyone else?"
> 
> "No. Nothing's definite yet. Don't..."
> 
> "No, I won't." Dan walked to the door. "That really is it, then. There's nothing else to say, is there?"
> 
> Keith shook his head and looked down.
> 
> Dan walked out and quietly shut the door behind him.
> 
> ~*~*~*~

  
"Goddamn it, Dan! Don't you get it? My therapist heard nothing but your name for years. I can't, I won't go down that road again!

Dan answered softly, "I'm sorry. It's... I still love you, you know."

"I love you too, Danny. I always have and always will. Now go check on your kids, then get in bed with your wife."

"Yeah. I will."

"Good night."

"Night. I'm sorry."

Keith hit the button to end the call. "I'm sorry too. You'll never know how much."

**Author's Note:**

> _Disclaimer: Any similarity between the fictional version of the person portrayed here and the actual person is purely coincidental. This is a work of fiction. This is not an attempt to defame the character of said person on the basis of libel, as the work is FICTIONAL (and NOT an intently false statement created with the express purpose of misleading others about the actual character of said person)._
> 
> _Any mention of any associated entities, or any copyrighted material pertaining therein is reasonably protected by the Fair Use Rule of the United States Copyright Act of 1976, and is not intended to infringe upon any copyrighted material._


End file.
